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Lexi’s little stunt stirred up a hornets nest of horny guys who all bombarded me with questions from all sides. And to make it worse, I was still laying on the ground, because no one had bothered to help me before getting into a shouting match with one another to try and get an answer from me. My headache was starting to grow larger and larger with each passing second, and I took a deep breath to explode on them, but someone beat me to the punch.

“Everyone be quiet!” Melissa roared causing everyone in the class to turn and face her. She cleared her throat and pointed at the door, “Unless you are in my class, or have a question for me, you need to leave. Right. Now. You can talk to Mr. Kingly after school if it’s that important.”

Although there were some frustrated looks, eventually people did clear out of the classroom. I held my hand up and Jason helped me to my feet. Glancing over at Melissa, our eyes met as I mouthed the words “I owe you” and with a nod I knew that she got the message, the only thing I couldn’t understand however was the look she gave me after that. If I had to guess, I’d say she was suspicious of me.

What the fuck did I do to deserve that? I’m the victim here.

“So, dude, who is she?” Shawn asked. “And can you introduce me?”

“Her name’s Lexi, she’s twenty-two, and if you want to meet her then grow a pair and introduce yourself because I don’t want anything to do with her. This conversation is over. I’m going back to sleep.”

“What about the lunch she made you?”

“Knock yourself out,” I handed it to him and he smiled with glee, snatching it up and taking it to his seat. I looked over at Jason, “Make sure no one wakes me up man, I’m not in the mood today.”

“Alright man,” he chuckled, getting up to go investigate the box lunch with Shawn.

I was out like the fat kid in a dodgeball game within seconds. Jason made sure to wake me up right before the bell rang, and with a little preparation, I was able to bolt out of school before anyone could even bring up the topic of Lexi again. When I got too work however, my jaw dropped to the floor once I entered the locker room.

I walked over to the door that led to the restaurant and flung it open, “Missy K! Get in here!”

My foot was impatiently tapping against the ground as Missy K walked through the door in a hurry.

“What is it? What’s wrong TK?”

“Why is she here?” I pointed at Lexi who was leaning up against the wall with a smile on her face.

“Excuse me?”

“Why the fuck is she wearing a restaurant uniform?”

“Because I hired her.”

“Fire her.”

“What?”

“Fire her, right now!” I demanded.

“Awe you’re so mean,” Lexi teased, walking behind me and wrapping her arms loosely around my body. She leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek, causing me to clench both fists hard, fighting the urge to flip out on the spot because Missy K was standing only a few feet away. “Thanks again Missy K. I promise I won’t let you down.”

“No, thank you, I’m so glad someone else is finally living in the same house with TK. Puts my heart at ease now knowing that someone is looking after him. We offered but he refused every time.” Missy K shook her head, “So stubborn.”

“Oh he just likes to do things his own way.” She released me and headed for the door, “He’s been like that ever since he was a kid.”

“Oh yeah, I remember those days.”

They both shared a chuckle before Lexi waved goodbye and headed out the door.

“What. The. Fuck.” I said slowly.

“What’s the problem here TK?”

“Where do I start? How the fuck did she get a job here so quickly?”

“She came in during lunch and explained that she would be moving in with you and asked for a job here so she could be closer to you. I thought it was a good idea actually. This way if we can’t get a hold of you then we can always contact her. It’s a win-win for us because I was looking to hire someone anyway.”

“That’s it? That’s all it took?” I was visibly angry now. “She could be terrible at this job. Did you even check to see if she was capable of waiting tables? Someone walks off the street and claims to know me and they instantly get a job? What the fuck is this shit?”

“I remember your parents telling me that she used to babysit you before she had to move away, and Melody offered to teach her so we didn’t have to draw sticks for it. Plus, she was really excited to have another girl working with her.”

“That back stabbing cunt,” I mumbled underneath my breath.

“What was that?”

“I said I want her gone.”

“TK, you’re being childish.”

“You haven’t seen childish Missy K. I flat out REFUSE to work with her. And if she stays, then I’m going. There’s no ifs ands or buts about it. I’m not going to work here as long as she’s employed here. Get rid of her, NOW!”

“You better watch your tone.” She snapped, “Remember that I own this place TK, not you. I was the one who fudged the paperwork and let you work here for the last two years because you were too stubborn to leave your house. I was the one who followed you home every night you had late shift just to make sure you got there safely. Now, I’ve let you get away with more then you can imagine, even the few times that you’ve publically yelled at me I’ve still shrugged it off, but I’m not going to stand for this. You can’t bully me around TK, so I suggest you shut up, get dressed, and get your ass in the kitchen. And if you can’t do that, then you can find another job!”

Our eyes glared heatedly at one another. Like she said, it wasn’t the first time we got into an argument like this, and most of the time that it happened she would back down or find a middle ground with me.

But not this time.

Just the look in her shaky eyes told me that it was all or nothing. She showed me her hand, and now it my turn to do the same.

I opened my locker, grabbing my apron and extra set of keys that Melody must’ve placed inside after coming to work today, ripping off the two that were to this store and dropping them along with the apron on the ground. “I quit.”

Without another word, I walked out the back door and headed back home. It was rash, stupid, and stubborn, but I had a very clear line when it came to Lexi. If she’s involved, then I don’t want to be anywhere near it, and if that meant that I couldn’t keep my job, then it had to go. But now I had another problem.

How the fuck was I going to pay for the house?

I had enough money to pay the bills for the next three weeks plus change, but after that I don’t know what would happen. Although it was pretty much my new highest priority, I was going to save the job hunt for tomorrow. Today, I just wanted to hit something. When I got home, I immediately went into the garage, dropped my bag, and went to town on the punching bag that Rocky helped me install.

I don’t know how long I wailed away at that bag but it was one of the few times that I seriously went all out, throwing hooks and haymakers in between every couple jabs. It echoed throughout the hollow garage, and when it was finally over, I was drenched in sweat, hunching over to try and catch my breath.

“Shit,” I shouted, glancing down at my now cut up knuckles. Blood was slowly dripping down both hands now, and thanks to my now slowing adrenaline, the pain was starting sting making me regret not wrapping my hands or putting on gloves first. It was too late now though, and my rash decision quickly came back to bite me because every twitch off my hands brought an annoying amount of pain.

Although it was painful I managed to go upstairs and turn on the shower, hopping in and washing my knuckles off although the hot water stung like hell. When I was finished I headed downstairs, examining the cuts more closely now that they were semi-cleaned off. The moment I hit the bottom and turned to head for the kitchen however, my jaw dropped for the umpteenth millionth time in the past two days.

“How the fuck did you get in here!” I shouted.

Lexi was humming softly at the kitchen counter, stirring a pot of food and looking at me with a soft smile. “I used a key you dork. Remember when I took you home last night? You left your keys with someone at the restaurant so we almost had to go back but then you remembered that someone named Melissa left the spare key underneath the rug. By the way, who is Melissa? Oh, and why didn’t you wait for me after work? I wanted to walk home with you.”

“Look I don’t care! Get out of my house!” I turned and pointed but like an idiot, I forgot how badly that would hurt. “Son of a bitch!”

“What happened to your knuckles?” she shook her head before opening up the medicine cabinet, which incidentally was in the same spot it was six years ago, and grabbing out some gauze. “Come here and let me wrap them up for you.”

“Fuck you! I had to quit my job because of you, so you are absolutely the last person I want to see right now.”

“Why’d you quit? I thought we’d have fun working in that restaurant together,” she giggled. “Such a fun group of people too! You all have nicknames and everything. Can I call you TK too?”

“Shut the fuck up and get out of my house before I call cops on you!”

“Fine, fine,” she shrugged playfully, signaling that she was up to something. And I knew I was going to regret whatever it was. “But I think I should warn you that you’re only sixteen Tucker Kingly.” She sang my name as if it was a joyous tune. “So, if the police were to show up here randomly and find out that you’re living without parental or guardian supervision, then they might have to take you to a foster home. After that, who knows where you’ll end up?”

The sizzling pot became the sound of choice as I slowly wrapped my head around what she said. “Are you…blackmailing me?”

“Of course not. I came here because after I heard what happened to you, I was genuinely concerned for your safety. And, as a responsible adult, I will look after you like I did six years ago. Now, if you’d rather not have me stay here, then I can always arrange for the choice to be made for you. Either way, I’m not going to let you stay here alone anymore.” She walked over to me and flicked my forehead but I didn’t react, instead staring at her with murderous eyes. “I know you Tucker. I know that if you think you’re right, then you’re going to do it, and the only way to stop you, is to force you.”

“Other then the time you babysat me, we probably spent less then a month hanging out. You don’t know me you conniving, evil cu-”

“Ah, ah, ah,” with a finger wag, she interrupted me. “I don’t want to hear that language. Now let me see your hands.” Although it sounded like an offer, she grabbed one regardless and began wrapping it while I shook with rage. Once she was done with both she smiled and softly said, “There. All better.”

“What you’re doing is low. Almost as low as the shit you pulled six years ago. So if I’m forced to now live with you, then listen up. Don’t talk to me, don’t look at me, don’t be in the same room as me, and don’t try anything cute either! You pay half of the monthly bills, provide your own damn food, and stay the fuck out of my business. Period! Got it?”

“Dinner will be ready in a couple minutes.”

“Fuck you,” I growled and stormed off in the other direction.

I spent the rest of the night in my room, refusing to come out like the stubborn child everyone claimed me to be. In the middle of the night I was forced to get up and head down stairs however because I was dying of hunger. Sitting on the table, wrapped in what looked like tin foil to help preserve it, was the dinner that Lexi had made earlier. I looked at it disgustingly before grabbing it and throwing it in the trash, scouring the cupboards for some junk food to munch on. With my belly full of trash, I headed back upstairs and crashed on my bed.

When I woke up and got ready for school, I headed downstairs to find Lexi cooking once again.

“Good morning TK!”

“Don’t call me that. Ever.” She laughed as if it was all a joke but I wasn’t laughing, walking to the fridge and grabbing a water before turning to leave.

“Wait, I’m almost done with your lunch.”

“Don’t want it.”

“Then I’ll just have to deliver it to your class again.”

I stopped mid-step and looked at the ground. Heaving a heavy sigh, I turned around and fell onto the seat at the table to wait for her to finish. She set it in my lap a moment later and tried to kiss my forehead but I dodged it and headed for the door. My temper was slowly starting to get the better of me as I stormed out of my house, something that I never thought I’d ever do. It’s my own fucking house after all.

The worst part was that she was smiling the entire time. In fact, every time we talked she was smiling, even when I was yelling at her, she never once got mad.

I walked into my classroom, dropping off the box lunch on Shawn’s desk. “Happy birthday.”

“Awesome! Thanks man.”

Taking a seat at my desk, I examined my still achy hands as Jason took notice. “The hell happened to your hands?”

“Jason, am I crazy?” I asked, completely ignoring his question.

“I’m guessing there’s a back story behind this sudden life altering question?”

“In two days she’s managed to completely fuck up my life man. I quit my job, cut up my knuckles in a fit of rage, and don’t even have a say about whether or not she can stay in my own fucking house.” I looked at him. “And then I yelled at her bro. At the top of my fucking lungs. She didn’t flinch, or get angry, or anything. She sat there and smiled while I threatened to call the cops on her, and the twisted thing about it all, is that she somehow turned it around on me and made me look like I was the kid. I’ve been living on my own for two years bro, and she treats me like I’m some helpless ten year old. Does she honestly think that I’m that vulnerable or something? Like what the fuck is this. And she’s always smiling! Always! Like no matter what I say or do, she’s always fucking smiling at me. I can’t tell whether she’s crazy or genuinely happy to see me scream and shout like a spoiled brat.”

“Wow,” he clapped his hands softly. “That was some speech. I don’t think I’ve heard you actually rant like that. You’re normally a calm person. Do you at least feel better now?”

“Not really.”

“Well…since you no longer have a job, why don’t we hang out after school? Take your mind off things y'know?”

He was completely ignoring everything I was saying, but he knew that that was probably the best and only option he had. If he would’ve given me advice I would’ve probably shrugged it off because he’s a spoiled rich kid who doesn’t know the meaning of real problems, and the fact that he realizes that makes me value him as a friend.

“Sure, but only for like an hour or two. Still gotta find another job before the end of next week.”

“We’ll kill two birds with one stone dude, don’t worry.”

“Can I come?” Shawn asked, stuffing his face with Lexi’s lunch even though it was still morning.

“You know I’m not going any where near Lexi right?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Means you don’t know the old saying bros before hoes,” Jason said.

“I do too!”

“Bullshit,” we said in unison.

“But if you want to come, that’s fine, I’m just letting you know now so you don’t bitch about it uncontrollably.”

It wasn’t much, but it had been a while since we all hung out so it was something to look forward to. We talked about what we’d do for most of the day, trying to decide whether or not it was worth it to see a movie or not and other bullshit like that. School seemed to almost fly by after that, and thanks to Melissa’s announcement yesterday, I wasn’t hounded about Lexi at all. Things were looking a little better, and when the bell rang we gathered up our things and headed for the door.

“Oh Mr. Kingly,” Melissa stopped me before I hit the door. “I need to talk to you real quick.”

“Um, alright.” I shrugged and looked at Jason and Shawn, “Meet you guys outside.” They nodded and left the room as I headed over to Melissa’s desk, a slight feeling of déjà vu creeping back up in my head. Once everyone had left I looked at her questionably, “Please don’t tell me you think you’re pregnant again?”

She giggled and shook her head, “No, it’s not about that. I overheard your conversation this morning and was wondering if everything was alright? You seemed a little out of it the last two days, and I have a feeling that it involves that girl Lexi. Right? That’s the name of the girl that came into my class yesterday and dropped of your lunch.”

“Wait, you overhead us?” The only reason this caught my attention was because I sat in the back…far away from the front obviously. So the only way for her to hear was if she was hell bent on listening to me. “Were you…eavesdropping?”

“What? No! Of course not! I merely caught a part of your conversation when I was helping another student. Honest!”

“Uh huh.”

“Look that’s not the point. I was just going to ask if you wanted to go downtown this Friday and blow off some steam. It doesn’t feel like a walk in the park would do you any good right now.”

“So like…a date?”

“N-No! Just, as friends!” she started sputtering out incoherent words and I laughed at how embarrassed she got from that simple statement.

“That doesn’t sound too bad actually,” I smiled, “After school?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want me to wear something special?”

“Ha-Ha,” she smirked and pointed at the door. “Get out of here already.”

“Alright I’m going,” I headed over to the door, opening it up and gazing down the hallway to catch a glimpse of blonde hair and a short skirt. My body froze as the figure disappeared around the corner before I could I.D. them.

“Something wrong Tucker?”

“Um,” I shook my head, snapping me back into reality. “No, thought I saw something is all.” I waved goodbye and headed out the door, with only one thought on my mind.

Who the fuck was just eavesdropping on that conversation?

I didn’t have time to play detective because Jason and Shawn were still waiting for me outside so I hurried up to meet them and we hit the town. We decided that the best plan was to screw any plan we thought off and just wander around town, stopping at random shops whenever we felt like it was worth the time. I did decide to grab a job application whenever I saw that a store was hiring however, but other then that it was a pretty fun time. Time seemed to flow by and before we knew it the sun was setting but we didn’t notice thanks to Shawn.

Being the hopeless romantic that he was, he kept chasing girls whenever they passed by providing plenty of entertainment for Jason and I. After many unsuccessful attempts, and good bit of laughter from my end, I eventually had to call it a night.

They waved goodbye as I headed in the other direction, my side still aching from laughing so hard. It wasn’t that long of a walk from where I was, and soon enough I was walking through my door. Lexi was sitting on the couch watching TV, and when she saw me she immediately smiled.

“Hey baby! Welcome home!”

“Don’t call me that.”

“How was your day?”

“Stop ignoring everything I’m saying!”

“You know that guy Mouse? He tried to hit on me while he was carrying a tray of dishes and ended up tripping over his own feet and covering the floor with food. It was pretty funny actually.”

I wouldn’t put it past Mouse to be that dumb.

“Talking to you is like talking a brick wall,” I mumbled walking up the stairs.

Ignoring the fact that she once again didn’t bother to react to anything I said and kept on smiling, I stayed in my room for the rest of the night. I had more important things to worry about after all. Like filling out a dozen applications, and trying to find out who the fuck was eavesdropping on my conversation with Melissa.

It took a lot longer then I expected to fill out the applications, and by the time I was finished it was past midnight. Drudging down to the kitchen I found a plate of food wrapped up yet again, and much like the previous night I tossed it in the garbage before gorging down on chips until I was full. I’m not saying that I wasn’t healthy, but if this kept up I’ll be fat in no time.

When Friday rolled around, I met Melissa at the bus stop and we climbed on as it arrived. Taking our seats at the back of the bus, we struck up some light chatter when suddenly…this happened.

“Tucker? Ms. Benson?”

Our conversation halted as we both looked towards the front of the bus too see none other then Heartbreak Hailey headed our way. She put on the worst surprised face I’d ever seen, meaning that she knew we’d be here. So putting to together it was safe to say that she was the eavesdropper that I was worrying so much about. But I couldn’t figure out why.

“I was planning on going downtown to shop for clothes today. What are you two doing here together? Did you just bump into each other or were you both headed somewhere together? That would be really weird.”

“No fucking way,” the words slipped out of my mouth as I put the pieces together to this dizzying puzzle.

“What was that?”

“I said it’s a very special day.”

“Really?” Now she was really surprised, “How come?”

Time to lie like it’s my job. “Today’s the day my cousin died. Melissa offered to take me into town and help me relax after and blow off some steam. I already burned my hands on accident cooking so she was afraid of what I might do if I was left alone to grieve.” I held out my hands that were still wrapped up to further convince her. “She’s always worrying about me like that.”

“But-but why? She’s just our teacher?”

“Oh, you don’t know? Melissa used to be my neighbor way back when I was in elementary school. She’d come over and watch movies with me and cook dinner when my parents couldn’t make it back until late. It was pretty crazy seeing her again, and we haven’t had a lot of time to catch up on things.”

I think the part about my cousin dying may have been too much, but when it doubt, always fall back too the death card. They can’t call it a bluff after all, and if they did, I could just flip out and call them an insensitive bastard or bitch in this case. Still, I was more surprised that Hailey was the eavesdropper, and her story only made it more obvious.

What kind of teenage girl goes clothes shopping by herself after all? That’s unheard of. Plus, downtown wasn’t exactly a beacon of light in society. There are always reports of people being mugged and if Hailey’s walking the streets alone any time that it starts getting dark she can kiss her ass goodbye. Point is, strength in numbers, unless you can fight of course, then you can walk the streets without a single fear. Least that’s how I looked at it.

“Um…no. I-I didn’t know that actually,” she laughed awkwardly.

“Don’t worry about it, since you’re here do you want to come with us though?” I said with a smirk.

“N-No, I just remembered that I have to uh, do something with a friend today.” She got up, “Don’t close the doors please!”

Hailey didn’t even bother to wave back, scurrying off the bus like a mouse to its hole. Once she was off the doors closed and the bus resumed its normal route.

“What just happened?” Melissa looked at me.

“Hailey came in here hoping to catch us doing something illegal.”

“What? Why on earth would she think that?”

“Because she was eavesdropping on the conversation we had the other day.”

“Hailey was? Why?”

“That’s what I can’t figure out. I mean, to be honest, I don’t know much about her other then the fact that she’s never gone out with a guy, publically any way. She only hangs out with her girl friends and the only time she talks to a guy is when she rejects them, or in my case, calls them a pervert.”

“I don’t really understand that girl to be honest.”

“Me neither. But I don’t want to try and figure it out. Let’s just enjoy this trip and I’ll think about it later.”

“Sounds good, but um, do you mind answering a question for me?”

“Uh, sure. What’s up?”

“What is Lexi to you?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Y'know, is she like a friend? Relative?” she paused and glanced away, “Girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend? You think she’s my girlfriend?”

“Well, she did kiss you in front of the class, and she’s living with you right.”

I ran my hand down my face, “Trust me, it’s not like that. She use to babysit me and for some reason she’s convinced that she needs to live with me now because I’m not eighteen and can’t legally live alone. That’s it. I don’t have feelings for her at all, promise.”

“O-Oh, well, I’m sorry for misunderstanding everything.”

“I don’t blame you for seeing things like that but trust me when I say that I don’t want anything to do with that girl. Ever.”

The rest of the day was nice, and surprisingly lacking in sexual tension. I thought that maybe we would’ve had another moment where passion took over but…nothing. Still couldn’t figure out if that was a good or bad thing, but when we parted ways she seemed genuinely happy with how things played out and I had to admit that I was smiling too.

I faced the same bullshit with Lexi when I got home however, and that quickly brought my good mood spiraling down the drain. From that day on I felt like I was being confined to my room. I refused to speak to her after all, and just being near her seemed to goad her into talking to me so it seemed like the only solution at the time.

With my first workless week in two years gone, I was well into my second and I noticed how quickly I fell into a pattern. Wake up, wait for lunch, give lunch to Shawn, go out looking for work, come home and retreat to my room, do homework and wait until it was well past midnight before throwing away a waiting dinner and snacking on total crap until I was full.

How the hell did my simple life spiral out of control so fast?

I hopped off the bus after a long day of job hunting downtown, the golden hue of the sunset slightly blinding me as I headed to a convenience store to grab a drink. Time was running out and even though I hated to admit it, if I couldn’t find a job soon I’d need Lexi’s help to pay for the house. Quiet frankly I’d rather chew on glass then have that happen.

After I had my soda in hand, I took a step outside and starting chugging my drink when I heard a familiar voice shout out, “Get your filthy hands off me you fucking retards!”

I spat out my drink and started coughing, clearing my lungs as I looked for the source. Must’ve come from the parking lot behind the store. Cautiously, I made my way around back and peeked around the side of the store to see what was going on. There was no denying it now, that was definitely Heartbreak Hailey’s voice, although that was the first time I heard her cuss…ever. In school she was well mannered, never shouted, always smiled, and always answered as politely as possible, even when she rejected guys.

Then again I think this situation might’ve called for it. She was surrounded by three pretty beefy looking guys, and one of them had a tight grip around her wrist.

“Shut the fuck up you loudmouth bitch. Where do you get off acting all high and mighty? You think you’re better then me?” the guy holding her wrist barked.

“I don’t think, I know I’m better then pigs like you. Now get your hands off me, or else!”

“Or else what?”

“I’ll call the cops!” she took out her cell phone and I immediately face palmed. I didn’t even need to look because what happened next was obvious. “Hey that’s my phone!”

Wait for it…and! I heard a small thud sound as her phone was no doubt hurled against a wall. Yep, she’s an idiot alright.

“You’re going to pay for that jackass!”

And she’s still insulting them? Holy shit! I thought she was smart but the level of stupidity she’s showing is blowing my mind. Does she not understand what’s going on? I should probably step in before things get worse.

“I think we know just how to repay a mouthy bitch like you.”

Yep, definitely need to step in now.

“Hey!” I rounded the corner the corner as the group turned to look at me. Of course, Hailey was more surprised then anyone that I was here.

“T-Tucker? W-What are you doing here?”

“Grabbing a drink,” I shook the bottle. “What’s going on here?”

“Nothing,” the man that had his hand on Hailey said. He had arms the size of cantaloupes with surfer length long blonde hair, and was easily the tallest of the three as well as the biggest. “Just having a little chat with your friend here.”

“And if we don’t?” the man on the right asked. A smug looking mother fucker with a sleeveless shirt and sunglasses. I thought he looked like a douche bag to be honest, but that’s as far as I’m going to judge him.

“I’m going to have to stop you.”

“Why?” the guy on the left piped in. A normal looking dude with black hair and a black sweatshirt on. “She ain’t even your friend. She just said it. You really gonna stick your neck out for someone as snobby as this cunt?”

“I’m not gonna just up and abandon her man, sorry.”

“Why the fuck are you apologizing to us? You’re the one about to get your ass beat.”

“Then hit me already,” I taunted, mainly because I promised Rocky I wouldn’t fight unless someone threw the first punch, and my wish was granted as the normal looking guy took a shot at my face that sent me tumbling back. Admittedly I wasn’t ready for them to hit me right off the back but it wasn’t that hard of a hit anyway. “Least I know you hit like a bitch now.”

He didn’t take to kindly to that, rushing forward and cocking his arm back. I ducked underneath his haymaker and knocked him on his ass with a quick combo. After he hit the ground I realized something very, VERY, important.

I didn’t know how to fight multiple people. Rocky taught me how to box, one on one, complete focus on the opponent, not opponents. Needless to say, I paid for my inexperience. The sleeveless guy blindsided me and got a couple free shots off before I was able to refocus and deal with him.

A quick side step brought me in close and I completely hammered the guy’s stomach, forcing him to hunch over and giving me a clear shot of his face. By the time he hit the ground I was already getting pummeled from behind, and the process only seemed to repeat itself after that. If I knocked one down, I would get blindsided by the one that got up, and it was starting to take its toll on me. My ribs were aching, my knuckles had opened up again and were bleeding down my hand, and on top of it all, my right eye was starting to swell up giving me less then ideal vision.

Good news was that I was pretty sure I was winning, because after a solid right hook to the surfer guy’s temple, he crumbled lifelessly to the ground. And the one normal looking guy hadn’t gotten up in a while either so that left-

“Tucker behind you!” Hailey shouted out and I turned around only to be rocked by something that definitely wasn’t a fist.

There was a sharp ringing sound in my ears as I fell face first into the ground like a ragdoll. It was tough but I managed to push myself to my knees, bringing my hand up to my forehead where I received the devastating blow. Because things weren’t already bad enough, I discovered that I was now bleeding from my forehead. Now what I really wanted to know was what the fuck just hit me.

I fought my way to my feet and lazily looked back at the douche bag who hit me, using my one working eye to notice the object in his hand.

“Where the fuck did you get a two-by-four in the middle of a parking lot?” I asked, honestly curios as to where the fuck came from. He didn’t give me an answer however, dropping the foot long piece of wood and getting the fuck out of dodge as I struggled to stand upright. Thank God he did too, because I don’t think I had the energy to go another couple punches. Although it felt like I had just fought a war, truth was it didn’t last more then two minutes, but holy shit did it hurt.

I glanced over at Hailey who was, apart from being completely useless, still standing in the same spot since the fight began.

“You ok?” I asked

“I-I’m fine. Are you ok?”

“I’ll live. You need me to walk you somewhere?”

“You’re not fine! You’re bleeding!”

“I’ll take that as a no then,” I turned and started hobbling out of the parking lot.

“Wait!” I looked back at her. “Why’d you do it?”

“Why’d I do what? Stick my neck out for a girl that hates me?”

“I never said I hated you!”

“But you do. You eavesdropped on mine and Melissa’s conversation two weeks ago to try and get me in trouble. You spread rumors about me being a pervert even though it was an accident. And when I came to help you, you said it out right that I wasn’t your friend.” I couldn’t really see clearly but I could tell that I hit the nail on the hammer with my accusations, “So if I gotta answer your question, then I’ll give you the truth. Even if you don’t like me, I’m not going to abandon you when I know I can help. And if you’re wondering, I won’t tell anyone about what happened here. Consider it our secret.”

She didn’t get a chance to reply, or she didn’t want too, either way, I walked with a bad limp like an old school pimp. I wasn’t going home of course, I was bleeding and beaten pretty badly and there was only one person I trusted to patch me up. It took me awhile but eventually I made it to the back of the restaurant, fumbling with the handle until someone opened it up for me.

“Whoa!” Mouse caught me as I fell forward. “TK what happened?”

“Get…Missy K,” I mumbled. He helped me to the lone bench in the room and darted out of the door as I laid there, not bothering to wipe off the blood that was still trickling down my face. Moments later Missy K and Rocky both came flying into the room with Mouse following close behind. “Hey guys.”

“What happened to you?” he asked while Missy K flew back out of the room.

“I won.”

“What does the other guy look like then?”

“Which one?”

“There were more then one?”

“Three of em. You didn’t teach me how to fight multiple people.”

“Well what you want to do is keep ‘em all in front of you, because if you lose sight of one, they’ll blindside you.”

“Figured that out the hard way. Fucker even rocked me with a two-by-four,” I tried to chuckle as Missy K came flying back through the door with a first aid kit but it turned into a hoarse cough.

“Where’d he get a two-by-four?”

“That’s what I was saying. Got his two friends though,” I gave him a thumbs-up but Missy K abruptly grabbed my wrist and forced and slammed it back into my chest. “What am I supposed to do when they use cheap shit like that?”

“Find a bigger weapon and make ‘em regret it.”

“Now that’s a good idea.”

“This isn’t funny TK!” she roared. “You’re seriously injured, you shouldn’t be laughing about it with Rocky.”

“Two weeks go by and this is the greeting I get?”

“Stop acting like this is a joke! You’re bleeding!”

“I’m fine now.”

“You’re cut up, bruised, beaten, and your voice sounds like you’ve been smoking for fifty years. Please tell me what about this situation is fine?” she was raising her voice, kneeling beside me with a small tear rolling down her face.

“Because you’re here.” I smiled goofily. “You’ve always patched me up Missy K. When I skinned my knee as a kid you patched me up. When I burned my hands cooking you patched me up. When Rocky gave me a black eye-”

“That was an accident I swear!” he said defensively.

“-you still patched me up. No matter what. When I’m hurt or in trouble, I know you’ll always patch me up. Call me ungrateful if you want but in Missy K I trust.”

“Stop talking,” she hushed me, taking a deep breath while shaking her head. “You’re voice is almost gone. You two go back to work, I’ll take care of this.” They exited the room shortly after and I closed my eyes to let Missy K work. She cleaned off the blood on my face and hands first, making me hold an ice pack up to my face to reduce swelling the entire time. Once she finished with that she wrapped all of my wounds before lifting up my shirt to check my ribs. “I called Lexi by the way. She’s coming to get you, no arguments.”

“You realize that that girl is the main reason we fight right? If it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t have this stupid complex and half the arguments we had wouldn’t even exist.”

“And if it wasn’t for her you wouldn’t have grown into the person we all know and love today. I now you don’t like her TK but have you tried talking to her about what happened?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Then find something, for me. I don’t like you wandering around the streets all the time, and because of it you’re hurt now. You know you always have a job waiting for you here not only because you’re good at it but because it keeps me at ease knowing that you’re safe.”

“You spoil me to much Missy K.” I shook my head softly.

“What can I say? You’re like the nephew I never had.”

“And you’re like aunt I really need. I guess I can try at the very least.”

“Thank you.” The door flew open at that moment as Lexi entered the room, huffing and puffing. “Thanks for coming down and getting him Lexi. I don’t think he could get home on his own to be honest.”

“Is he ok?” she asked.

“He’s been better. Try and keep him in bed over the weekend ok? Even if you have to tie him down.”

“Hilarious Missy K,” I joked as she helped me sit up. It took longer then I would’ve liked but eventually, with Lexi’s support, I walked out of there and headed home. To my surprise, she didn’t say a word to me, keeping her eyes forward as we hobbled all the way home.

She even helped me into bed, avoiding eye contact with me the whole time as I rested my head against my pillow and closed my eyes. My door opened and shut moments later as she left the room and I thought for a moment that she was mad at me for some reason, but any thought of that was quickly dispelled when she came flying back through that door with a blanket and pillow in her hand. She got on the ground and leaned up against the wall, pulling out a book from underneath her arm while she got comfy on the ground.

“Tell me when you’re hungry, ok?”

“Whatever,” I rolled over and pulled the covers over my head. All that I heard after that was the occasional slicing of a page being turned. It wasn’t enough to keep me up though, and soon after I fell asleep.

By the time I woke up it was around midnight. Lexi was passed out and next to my clock was a plate of food. With a low roar of my stomach, I regretfully grabbed the plate and started eating. It was only lukewarm but I didn’t mind at all, devouring it like it was my last meal and letting out a sigh of content.

When I set the plate back down, I started to get comfy again when Lexi asked, “How was it?”

I stopped and looked over at her. She was laying on her side with her back facing me and I thought she was asleep so I was momentarily stunned. “It was…alright.”

“That’s good.”

I didn’t answer, closing my eyes and trying to forget that that moment ever happened. The next day I was confined to my room except for going to the bathroom and taking a quick shower. Lexi changed my bandages even though I protested the idea, but I still felt pretty drained so that was the extent of my resistance. She spent the entire day in my room too, only getting up to go get something to eat for us before she plopped back down on the ground and continued reading. I could tell right away though that her movements were just a little bit sluggish, not only that, but she was constantly rubbing her back and repositioning herself to try and get comfy. After some thought I realized that why she was acting so weird. Not only did she stay up late last night to make sure I actually ate but her back probably hurt from sleeping on the ground and spending most of the day sitting there.

I don’t get it. Why didn’t she just get up and go do something? Why was she putting herself through this just to make sure I stayed in bed? God damn, girls are confusing.

It was Sunday night now, and I had spent all day in bed just like Missy K wanted, bored out of my mind and hopeful that I could go to school the next day. Lexi was just now settling back onto the ground as the last of the light from outside disappeared.

“You can sleep up here if you want,” I looked at her.

“No thanks, I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine. Your backs hurting and you haven’t had a good night sleep in the last two days. Just get up here already.”

“Are you sure?”

Nope. But I promised Missy K that I would at least try and communicate with Lexi so this was all I could come up with. Admittedly not the best plan, but it was too late to back out now.

“Yeah,” I scooted over and she got up, climbing into bed next to me. We kept to our own sides for awhile, the sound of shifting underneath the covers was the only hint I had that she was still awake. Finally, I decided to man up and just ask her outright, “Why’d you come back?”

“What?”

“I said why’d you come back?”

“Well, I was talking to my grandmother when I brought up your name. She told me what happened to your parents and that your aunt and uncle disappeared as well so you were living on your own. Once I heard that, I dropped everything and came here to make sure you were ok.”

“Just like that? You dropped everything to come make sure some kid you babysat six years ago was ok.”

“You’re not just some kid Tucker.”

“And why is that? We spent less then three months together and half of it I spent keeping my mouth shut while the other half we spent having sex.” I rolled over to look at her but she had her back to me.

“Maybe I missed you.”

“Or maybe you missed what we did.”

“I didn’t come back here because of what we did.”

“Then why did you come back? You show up out of the blue after that long and just pretend nothings happened? Do you have any idea how I felt when my mom told me you moved? And to make it worse, I had to lie to her face as she listed off things we supposedly did. I don’t think you realize just how much that affected me. I spent the longest time just sitting in my room wondering why. Why did you leave? Why didn’t you tell me? Did I do something wrong? I obsessed over this for longer then I’d like to admit, and suddenly your back, and all you do is smile. Why are you always smiling at me huh? Are you happy about what happened? Do you like seeing me like this?” I was progressively getting louder when I finally just shouted. “Tell me what the fuck I did wrong!”

This wasn’t helping, plain and simple, but I couldn’t imagine this conversation going any other way. Now, how she reacted would dictate how things played out from here.

I heard her take a deep breath before finally turning around to face me. She didn’t look happy, or sad, or…anything for that matter. She was just looking at me as blank as a piece of paper.

“Why am I always smiling?” she repeated my question. “Because I remember the little boy that told me he loved my smile. He put up with so much day after day just because he wanted to see me happy, and it was probably the sweetest thing anyone’s ever done for me. And after awhile, I realized that I was starting to get attached to him too, and whenever he was happy it would make me happy. It was getting hard too tell whether or not I was falling for him even though we hadn’t been together longer then a two months, and worse, he was only ten. Totally illegal yet I didn’t even care. But before I could sort out all these feelings I had, I found out that I had to move far away, and couldn’t bring myself to tell him.” Closing her eyes she buried her face in my pillow for a second before taking a deep breath. “I just, didn’t want to see you sad or upset. I wanted your smiling face to be the last thing I remembered.”

She sniffled, “And now your hurt, and I know that it’s all my fault so I have to sit here and try to hold back my feelings because I don’t want you too worry.” I saw her hastily wipe the tears that were falling down her face now, “I’m sorry for putting you through all of this Tucker.”

Call me a sucker, or a chump, but I couldn’t bring myself to just sit there and do nothing while she started crying. I sat up, and eased her over to me as she buried her head in my chest, continuing to weep as I gently rubbed her back. How long we stayed like that was a mystery to me, but I kept soothing her until she pushed herself away and wiped another set of tears off her face. Our eyes met after that, and I was lost in this new image of her. This helpless image of her.

Then…we kissed

And we kissed, and we kept kissing as lust took over. It had been so long since I tasted her lips that I couldn’t stop, and neither could she for that matter, climbing on top of me while gently cupping my face and avoiding the bruises. Our tongues finally met with one another’s and it seemed to drive us to keep going, my hands moving down to her ass while she lowered one into my shorts. I squeezed on both of her cheeks firmly while she fished my dick out of my shorts and started to stroke it. We both moaned as our kissing became so sloppy that we abandoned it altogether, ditching our clothes and getting straight to the point.

She lowered herself onto my dick while I nibbled at her neck, grabbing her ass as she began riding me. Her pussy was so wet that it was dripping down my legs as her hips starting slamming down onto mine, “God I’ve dreamed of riding of your dick again,” she moaned into my ear. “It feels so fucking good I think I’m gonna cum already.” Her cute face scrunched up in pain as she whimpered out the words, “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck!”

As her pussy started to tighten up, it brought me closer and closer to cumming as well, “I’m gonna cum soon Lexi.”

She sped up her thrusts in a hurry, going faster and faster until I couldn’t contain it anymore. I shot my load deep inside her pussy and she loved every second of it, smiling like the cat that ate the canary and climbing off of me. We both eased our naked selves back under the covers as she snuggled up onto my chest, sighing loudly.

“Still making me smile,” she whispered.

“Old habits die hard I guess.”

When my alarm woke me up the next morning, Lexi was gone, and I was still naked. Since today was Monday and I already decided that I’d go to school, I headed for the shower to clean off and get changed. As I walked down the stairs I saw that she was in the same spot she usually was in the morning.

“Morning,” she smiled at me but I didn’t smile back, taking a seat at the table and taking a deep breath. “Did you change your bandages already?”

“Yeah, I took care of it,” I didn’t say a word as she finished making my lunch and walked over to me.

“Is something bothering you?”

“Last night,” I began, “I…don’t think it’s going to happen again.”

“Oh…I understand,” her voice was reduced to a whisper as she lowered her glance to the ground. “Does that mean you still hate me?”

Standing up, I grabbed the box lunch and stole a kiss causing her eyes to meet mine, “No. But I still need some time to sort this out.”

She smiled softly as I headed for the door, “Then I’ll wait.”

“Also,” I opened the door and looked back at her, “Tell Missy K, I’ll come by after school today to take her up on her offer.”

With a simple nod, I shut the door and headed to school. My mind was more confused then a five year old who tried to solve a rubix cube, but my mixed feelings for her aside, I needed to make up some kind of story about my injuries. I couldn’t just walk into class with bandages around my hands and forehead as well as a black eye and expect everyone to shrug it off after all.

The best I could come up with was how I fell down my stairs, but I doubt anyone would believe that. I was better when I had to lie spontaneously though, so I decided to just let fate dictate the bullshit that would flowing out of my mouth.

As I neared the entrance to the school, Jason and Shawn were both waiting for me, which was weird in it of itself.

“Dude, I told you its true!” Jason slapped Shawn back. “Tucker learned how to fight last year from some old boxing badass that he works with. You’re supposed to be his friend too and you didn’t even know that.”

“Dah fuck?” I looked at both of them.

“My bad Tucker,” Shawn said examining my injuries. “Jeez, she wasn’t kidding when she said you took a beating.”

“What?”

“The head wound and knuckles are still wrapped too,” Jason pointed at them, “Just proves it.”

“What the fuck are you guys talking about?”

“What do you mean?” Shawn asked. “It’s all over the school how you beat up three college kids in order to protect Heartbreak Hailey. Or is not true?”

“N-no it’s true. I did get in a fight to protect her, I guess I’m just surprised you guys know about it.”

“Dude she’s been talking about it nonstop, all morning. There’s even a rumor going around that she’s going to ask you out man. You’re totally in!” He went to give me a high five but I held my hand up and he corrected himself immediately and switched to a thumbs-up.

I looked at both of them suspiciously, “Is she really talking about me?”

With a questionable look on my face I let him guide me into the school, rounding corner after corner until we arrived in the cafeteria where there was at least fifty kids huddled Hailey as she retold the ending of the story.

“-and then the guy hit him with this gigantic block off wood, and I thought for sure that that would finally knock him out. But he got up again!” The crowd oo’ed and awe’d as Hailey reenacted the scene. “He was like totally cool and calm even though he was bleeding all over. Finally, he looked at the guy and asked him where he got the piece of wood. Can you believe that? He was like, not mad at all, and the funniest part was that the guy starting running away! He was so afraid of Tucker that he didn’t even want to fight him anymore.”

Jason nudged me, “This how you remember it?”

“Pretty much,” I said truthfully.

“Hey Hailey! Hailey!” Shawn shouted abruptly, waving his hands up and down as if trying to flag down a passing ship. “Tucker’s right here!”

“Shawn what the fuck,” I hissed under my breath. “Why’d you do that?”

“Dude she might ask you out! Why are you getting mad?”

I opened my mouth to tell him but I was swarmed by the masses of people in cafeteria as they fired questions one after another. Shawn disappeared in the crowd but Jason helped keep em at bay long enough for Hailey to finally wiggle her way through everyone and get to me. As if her standing in front of me was a queue to silence everyone, the cafeteria fell deathly silent.

“Hi,” she greeted me as though I didn’t just witness one of the craziest things I had ever seen. “Are you feeling better?”

“Um, yeah. I had a friend of mine patch me up and I spent most of the weekend in bed.”

“You poor thing,” the way she shook her head so sorrowfully almost convinced me that this girl was a saint. “I never got to say thank you for what you did.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“Well, you did come to my rescue so it is kind of a big deal. So, I was uh, wondering if maybe this Friday you want to go out and watch a movie with me. Maybe go get something to eat too. What do you say?”

Put me down in the records books, because never in the history of Heartbreak Hailey did this happen. I was now, literally, living the dream that half the guys in this school wished for. She asked me out, in front of so many people, and only a complete moron would turn her down. So what I couldn’t figure out, was why did I look her straight in the eye and say.

“No.”

-----
Author's note.
Because i'm dumb, i burned the top half of three of my fingers on my right hand so that's why this was later then the ten days i'm trying to release these in because typing with one hand is surprisingly annoying, and slow. My apologies. <3 It's getting better so ten days at the most you should see another part.

Also, i feel like i need to address this. In the comments there are arguments about 3es and my character in general. So i'll go out and say it flat out.
The people who defend me <3 thanks, your awesome.
The people who hate me, i deserve your hate and flack. i started something i didnt finish and i understand why you're pissed. i will say that i'm planning on finishing 3es, with my own ending. Dusk Flair was nice enough to write his ending and i dont have any hatred for him, in fact, i applaud him for saving my ass lol. But i will end 3es my way AFTER THIS SERIES, i promise.
Have a nice day all!